Between 2006 and 2017, Furlongs Travel organised numerous trips to the Galápagos Islands, each one personally escorted by our proprietors, Richard and Dawn Furlong. On some lucky occasions we were fortunate to spot the little vermilion flycatcher which, along with the now-extinct San Cristobal vermilion flycatcher, is endemic to Galápagos. Whilst a favourite amongst locals and visitors alike, this brilliantly coloured songbird is declining at an alarming rate.

Together with the Charles Darwin Foundation and Galápagos National Park, the UK’s Galápagos Conservation Trust is supporting a project to help save this little bird from extinction. The project involves restoring the Scalesia forest to encourage breeding and foraging; setting up regular rat controls to reduce predator pressure; and increasing the fledgling success of nests that are infested with a parasitic fly.

The good news is that, during the Covid-19 lockdown, six little vermilion flycatcher chicks have successfully fledged their nests on Santa Cruz Island, which is the most successful breeding season to date. However, there is still much more to do, not least since experts believe there are only 40 breeding pairs remaining.

Please support the project with a £10 donation.

Thank you.

For more details about the project and the UK's Galápagos Conservation Trust, visit https://galapagosconservation.org.uk/.

For more details about Furlongs Travel, please visit https://furlongs.co.uk/.

PS: Little vermilion flycatcher photo courtesy of John Chardine.